Notice illegal drugs, then party emptied (4)
I believe the answer is:
espy
'notice' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'illegal drugs then party emptied' is the wordplay.
'illegal drugs' becomes 'es' (ecstasy tablets. I am not sure about the 'illegal' bit.).
'then' says to put letters next to each other.
'emptied' means to remove the middle letters.
'party' with its centre taken out is 'py'.
'es'+'py'='ESPY'
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for espy that I've seen before include "Catch sight of (poetic)" , "Observe, notice" , "Observe (arch.)" , "Spot at a distance" , "Discern" .)